Improvement in furnaces for brick-kilns



UNITED STATES PATENT Il ICE.

JAMES OLD, OF ALLEGHENY, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN FURNACES FOR BRICK-KILNS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. l 87,891. datedFebruary 27, 1877; application filed September 9, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES OLD, of Allegheny city, in the county ofAllegheny and 'State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Furnaces for Brick-Kilns; and I do hereby declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled iu the art to which itpertains to make and use it, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, which form part of this specication.

This invention relates to certain improvements in the construction andarrangement of furnaces for brick-kilns, Svc.; the objects ot' which areto reduce the number of tires necessary for the burning of the bricks,and to effect a more complete combustion of the gases and smoke.

It consists, rst, in placing the furnaces within the walls of the kiln,opposite the piers,

pillars, or benches, as they are variously called,

with a flue on either side leading to the arches, which serve to conveythe products of combustion within the kiln, and also ascombustion-chambers for the gases aud smoke; secondly, it consists inproviding air-passages outside the ues, communicating with them and theexterior, whereby a limited quantity of air is supplied to the lues forconsuming the gases and smoke; and, lastly, it consists of a system ofair fines or spaces in the crown of the furnace f or the purposeofsupplying air, previously heated, to the flues and draftchambers.

In the drawings, forming part of this specicat-ion, Figure l is a frontelevation of the furnace and walls of the kiln. Fig. 2 is a verticallongitudinal section of the same. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on liney y, and Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on line .fr Fig. 5 representsthe bricks used for closing the dues.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the front walls of the furnace;B B, the side walls, and O is the rear where the kiln is built. D

' is the fire-chamber, built within the walls, op-

posite the piers and between two arches. The fire-chamber is providedwith the grate a, door b, and ash-pit c. The sides or bridge-walls E ofthe furnace have the interstices d above the fuel-chamber, and d1 below,and the piers d3, which extend upward to the crown L of the furnace, arestrengthened by the buttresses e. The interstices dl below thefuel-chamber permit the air from the ash-pit to pass up into the fluesthrough the air-spaces F in the walls on either side of thefire-chamber; and the interstices d above the lire allow the products ofcombustion to roll over the sides into the flues G, from whence theypass into the arches of the kiln. The flues G are formed in the interiorwalls H of the kiln, parallel to the lire-chamber, opposite or in linewith the arches, so that the heat and gases from the fire pass intothem, and are thence conveyed into the arches of the kiln. The flues G,in addition to conveying the heat to the kiln, also serve ascombustion-chambers for the gases and smoke arising from the re, whichpass through the interstices d, and their volume or mass is broken bythe piers d3, so that when they enter the flues, the air conveyedthither readily mixes with them and causes their rapid combustion. Theouter ends of the tlues are closed by the doors f, provided with themica windows g, through which the state of the flame and the burning ofthe brick can be observed. To supply air for the combustion of the smokeand gases in the tlues Gr the Walls H are provided with the passages h.,which communicate with the ilues G and the air-lines I, which are madebetween the side Walls of each adjoining furnace. The air for thepurpose is supplied from the exterior through the opening K in the frontWall, and the supply is regulated by the dampers la. The air, in passingthrough dues I and passages h, is raised in temperature by the heatedwalls, so that when it enters the lues Gr it mixes with the products ofcombustion without absorbing any perceptible amount of heat from them.rlhe air passages or lines lare also used to regulate the temperature ofthe arches. In this case, where one arch is burning too rapidly, theheat-due leading into it is closed near its rear end by the bricks i,which are passed in through the doors f. This, of course, cuts off theheat, and, by means of the dampers g, more or less cold air can beadmitted to the arch.

From this description, it will be readily understood that thearrangement of the lirechamber with relation to the llues G enables twoof the arches of the kiln to be heated by one tire; and each arch has acombustionchalnlier, where the gases and smoke are mixed with air andconsumed, thus effecting amore complete combustion and supplying eacharch with a heavier and mole intense flamcthan in kilns of otherconstruction.

In order that as little heat may be wasted as possible in supporting thecombustion, either of the fuel or the gases and smoke, the heat in thewalls of the furnace is utilized for the purpose of tempering the airsupplied for that purpose. To produce this effect, the crown L isprovided with air-reservoirs, where air from the exterior is heated byheat stored in the walls, and conveyed either to the combustionchambersof each furnace, or to the. ash-pits of opposite furnaces. Thesereservoirs consist of several connected passages, M, which ramifythrough the crown of the furnace and communicate, through passages l,with the combustion-chamber of said tlues, and with the exterior throughthe vertical shafts N. The cold air enters the shaft N through theopening K, which is provided with a damper, m, and passes thence intothe passages M, and is there heated. From here it is convey ed into thelines G, through the openings I, where it mixes with the gases andsmoke, and snpports their combustion. When it is desired to use heatedair for draft purposes, the openings l are closed and the passages M aremade to connect with pipes which are built in the top of the kiln, andare carried to the opposite side and terminated in the ash-pit ordraftchambers of the furnace. The air, in its passage through thereservoirs and pipes, receives a high degree of heat, and the combustionof the fuel being supported by this heated air,

considerable economy in its consumption is effected.

The pipes connected with the passages M may also be terminated in thepassages lin the crown of the opposite furnace, if it is desired to havethe air for supporting the combustion intensely heated. The air for thislatter purpose is carried from a low pointas the opening Kin the frontwall, or from a well provided for the purposeand is discharged at eitherof the two points described, the force of the draft from the furnacebeing sufficient to maintain a draft through the passage-ways.

This furnace is adapted to the heating of steam-boilers and other likepurposes, and the construction of the side walls may be applied to anystyle of furnace or fire-place, as well as the one specially described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim to be new, and desireto secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The tire-chamber D, arranged with relation to the tlues G and thearches of the kiln, substantially as described.

2. The side walls E, provided with the iuterstices d d1 and piers d3, incombination with the tire-chamber and combustionchambers, substantiallyas described.

3. The air'fiues I, provided with dampers k and the passages h, incombination with the dues G, substantially as described.

4. The combination of the reservoir M, ues or shafts N, passages l, andfines G, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this25th day of August, 1875.

Witnesses: JAMES OLD.

JOHN FI'rzsrMMoNs, ANDREW HUMBERT.

